If something crazy happens in Saturday's 139th Preakness Stakes, it will be even crazier in the winner's circle.

Imagine seeing Victor Cruz, the New York Giants' wide receiver, doing his signature salsa dance in front of a 3-year-old colt named Kid Cruz. Cruz, the football player, dances the salsa in the end zone whenever he scores a touchdown. And the crowd at MetLife Stadium goes wild.

If Kid Cruz, who is named for the player, pulls off a gigantic upset and wins the Preakness, Cruz the football player, will be holding a crash course in salsa in the Preakness winner's circle for trainer Linda Rice, jockey Julian Pimentel and everyone else associated with the colt.

"If Kid Cruz wins the Preakness, tell Linda I'll show her how to salsa," Cruz said.

The Preakness is expected to draw a field of nine 3-year-old colts and one 3-year-old filly. California Chrome, the Kentucky Derby winner, will be the overwhelming favorite in the $1.5 million race, which will be run at 1ï»¿3/16 miles. If the Derby winner runs his race -- and you hear this every year -- every other horse in the field will be running for second.

Kid Cruz will be making his debut against stakes company but he comes into this race off two wins, the latest being the Federico Tesio Stakes at Pimlico on April 19. The colt is the only horse in the race who has won over the Pimlico course. He is the only one who has raced over it. Home-field advantage?

He does his best running late, and there will be plenty of speed to set up his kick. But, make no mistake about it, he will be one of the bigger prices on the board. And that doesn't bother Cruz, the football player, at all.

"Hey, I know about long shots winning," Cruz said.

He could have been referring to himself. He was an undrafted free agent who signed with the Giants in the 2010 off-season. He was in the Pro Bowl in 2012.

Rice will be attempting to become the first woman to ever train a Preakness winner -- and she is already tired of having to talk about that. She would prefer to have the attention directed toward her horse. Or Victor Cruz, for that matter.

"We are just hoping for a big race," said Rice, who made history when she became the first woman to win a training title at Saratoga (2009). "He has run well his last two starts and he has a race over the track. This is certainly a tougher group of horses to contend with, but the timing works for us."

Before winning the Tesio, Rice had hoped to see what she had when Kid Cruz was scheduled to run in the Grade I Wood Memorial at Aqueduct on April 5. That never happened because Kid Cruz was diagnosed with a sore shoulder. His date with the big boys would have to wait.

Now it's here.

Kid Cruz is owned by Vina Del Mar Thoroughbreds and Black Swan Stable. Steve Brandt, the managing partner of Vina Del Mar, claimed the colt for $50,000 last November from Black Swan Stable, which later bought back a share of Kid Cruz.

"I tried to keep myself going into the Wood Memorial," Brandt, 56, said from his home in St. Petersburg, Fla. "I was really on a high and then I was really on a low. You learn very quickly in this game to keep your head cool."

Cruz, the football player, got involved in all of this when friends of his, who are associated with Black Swan Stable, put his name on the animal. It is not known whether the Giants receiver will be in Baltimore this weekend to watch his namesake run.